John Ross Thompson

April 22, 2008

Spring is here, so things are winding down at the church.  Correct?  Wrong!

We are excited about many new and expanded ministries, and want to share them with you.

We are pleased to welcome back Pastor Kennetha Bigham-Tsai from her three-month maternity leave.  Interim pastor Alice Fleming Townley served us very well with her preaching, pastoral care, and development of small group and other ministries.

Wednesday night activities continue, with nearly 100 participants each week from the Wesley Foundation and our church.  They will continue every week through May 14, when we will take a break until fall.  Dinner for all is at 5:30 p.m., with programs and classes at 6:30 p.m.

This Sunday, April 27, we will honor 20 college graduates and present two college scholarships.

May 11 will be a gala day as we celebrate Pentecost, Mother’s Day and Music Sunday all in the same worship service. The music from our choirs will have an international theme with anthems from around the world, fitting with the Pentecost theme when people from many nations heard God’s word in their own language.  This will be the final Sunday for our choirs until September.

May 18 will be children, children, children!  Our Children’s Sabbath worship service at 10:30 a.m. will feature many children sharing the story of Priscilla McDoodleNut DoodleMcMae Asks Why?  Original music has been written for this production by our music staff.  Practices for this event are being held on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m.

June 15 our summer schedule begins, with a 9 a.m. garden worship service and a 10:30 a.m. sanctuary worship service each week.  Come early for the informal outdoor worship service, or later for the more traditional worship service, all through the summer.  (We need large free-standing umbrellas or another type of shade to shield persons from the hot sun on the Sundays when the cool morning air is gone by 9 a.m.  If you have any of these to share, let us know.)   June 15 is also Father’s Day and a time to honor our four high school graduates.

June 15 to 20 will be the biggest event of the year for children, as Vacation Bible School is held every morning. It is the easiest program of the year to reach out to others beyond our church, so spread the word!

UUMC family retreats will be held at Lakeview June 20-22 and August 1-3, at Lake Michigan-Pentwater August 22-24, and at Lake Louise (Boyne Falls) January 23-25. Our youth mission team will be dedicated June 22 and will travel to West Virginia one week later for a full week of helping others.

The long-awaited second Sunday morning worship service will begin September 7. You will have the option of coming early to this more informal, smaller worship service in Copper Chimney Lounge, or coming later to the 10:30 a.m. sanctuary worship service every week.  Sunday School will continue to be at 9:15 a.m.  The early worship service will include more singing, child care for preschool children, and open sharing of joys and concerns, as well as more interactive worship.  We hope to continue this second worship service throughout the year.

September 7 will also be the launch of a renewed Sunday School program.  We are working now to prepare children’s curriculum and teachers, as well as classes for all ages, with a goal of dramatically increasing our Sunday School attendance this fall.  Plan now to make a renewed effort this to learn more about our faith, and to make sure your family members do the same.

Sunday afternoon, September 28, UUMC and the Wesley Foundation will host some 300 persons from around the conference at Super Sunday, a leadership training event for all persons in the church. We will need more than 40 persons from UUMC to staff this event, which will include some 16 workshops on spirituality and church leadership.

We are excited about the increasing number of new persons attending our church, and we are reaching out to welcome them, especially through the efforts of our new Welcoming Committee.  New member classes will be held soon.  We also are developing Fellowship Activities, based on the fellowship survey distributed in worship April 13 and 20.

UUMC never stops!  Even if you get away for a well-deserved break this spring or summer, join us when you can!  We’ll all about helping each other to know God and to grow closer to each other.